False Scent by Ngaio Marsh

False Scent by Ngaio Marsh has a great beginning.


False Scent by Ngaio Marsh started with Miss Bellamy fantasizing about her funeral. Her big ego allows her to fantasize that everyone loves her, and everyone cries at her grand funeral.

The opening paragraphs set the tone for the murder in False Scent by Ngaio Marsh.

False Scent by Ngaio Marsh is about Miss Mary Bellamy, a 50 years old darling of the London stage. She refuses to acknowledge the fact that she is growing old. She thinks that she is still the focus point of everyone.

She thinks that everyone worships her. She takes it for granted that every new play written by her ward is written specially for her. She takes it for granted that she will star in every new production.

False Scent by Ngaio Marsh covers just a very short period of time. In fact False Scent by Ngaio Marsh takes place within a day. From the morning of her birthday, to the murder, to the solution happens just within 24 hours.

False Scent by Ngaio Marsh portrays a possessive and crazy woman, Mary Bellamy, whom everyone fears, loves and adores.

False Scent by Ngaio Marsh has one of the most perfect endings in Superintendent Alleyn mystery series. The murderer and the victim both die in the end. The murderer commits the murder out of his love for Mary Bellamy.

Mary Bellamy has deteriorated. Her behavior indicates a serious mental condition. The murderer cannot bear to see her in this condition. He has a shock when Mary Bellamy tells him the truth about the parentage of his ward.

False Scent by Ngaio Marsh has a perfect beginning and a great ending for a sad detective story. The book starts with Mary Bellamy fantasizing about her funeral, and ends with her funeral.

I enjoy the usual team at work. Superintendent Alleyn and Inspector Fox are at it together, and manage to solve the mystery in less than a day.

The name of the book, False Scent by Ngaio Marsh, is due to the fact that the strong perfume masks the strong insecticide that kills Mary Bellamy. It is horrible to think that when Mary Bellamy sprays the perfume on herself, she is inhaling the deadly vapor of the insecticide as well.

This thought somehow kills the romance of this story.

Off With His Head by Ngaio Marsh

Off With His Head by Ngaio Marsh has a very unique theme.


Off With His Head by Ngaio Marsh features the local folk dancing theme. The Dance of the Five Sons in conjunction with the Winter Solstice runs throughout the theme of the book.

Even though The Dance of the Five Sons is a purely imaginary dance, it does reflect the theme of many traditional folk dances.

There were a total of eight dancers in this dance. William Andersen played the role of the Fool. His five sons played the role of the Five Sons.

Betty and the Crack made up the other two dancers.

A traditional dance turned into a murder when the Fool was beheaded. It seemed that nobody could have a chance to kill the Fool, especially not in front of all the villagers.

The Fool was supposed to die in the dance, and resurrect at the end of the dance. However, he never came alive. He was found dead with his body and head apart.

Everyone swore that the Fool never moved from his hiding place. What really happened?

The turning point in the Off With His Head by Ngaio Marsh came when the Dame Alice showed a diary entry written in the year 1798. The words spoken by the Fool was recorded. As Superintendent Alleyn read the entry, he knew how the Fool left the scene, and was murdered.

Off With His Head by Ngaio Marsh ended with the reconstruction of the dance. Off With His Head by Ngaio Marsh is a very interesting detective novel with an unique theme.

I like the characterization in this book as well. Detective Sergeant Bailey and Detective Sergeant Thompson played a bigger role in this book than other books.

Ernie, the youngest Andersen, seemingly retarded, yet managed to fool all his brothers. Right from the start, everyone knows that Ernie cuts off the head of his father. However, nobody really knows how. Even when Superintendent Alleyn proved that Ernie cut off the head, he was not the murderer.

Off With His Head by Ngaio Marsh is an extremely puzzling detective novel. However, once the solution is known, everything becomes so simple and clear.

How to lose weight naturally

You know the risk of taking pills to lose weight. You want to lose weight naturally.


How to lose weight naturally?

Here are a few simple answers to the question of how to lose weight naturally.



How to lose weight naturally: know your calories

You must know the minimum calories you need in a day. Your body needs a certain calories for the optimum function.

The easy way to compute the calories is to take your weight, in pounds, and multiply by 15. That is the number of calories you need if you are leading sedentary lifestyle.

If you are moderately active, you can take your weight, in pounds, and multiply by 17.

A professional sportsman will need more than that. If you are running marathon, you probably need more than 3,000 calories on that day.

How to lose weight naturally: Fruits and vegetables

You must remember to eat the fruits and vegetables every day. If you do not have access to fresh fruits and vegetables every day, you can consider frozen fruits and vegetables.

If you are a very busy professional, you can buy the nutritious food bars made from natural food. These food bars have high dietary fiber, vitamins and minerals.



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How to lose weight naturally: Quantity of the food

You can use the small utensils for eating, so that you do not overeat.

You have to monitor the quantity of the food you consume everyday. If you are eating starchy food, make sure you just eat a bit. If you are eating fruits and vegetables, you can eat more since they do not contain a lot of calories.

If you want to take sweet desserts, make sure you order the smallest size possible. You can even share the dessert with your friends and colleagues.

How to lose weight naturally: Do not skip meal

You must not try to skip meal, especially your breakfast. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. You need to eat a nutritious breakfast to kick start the day.

You can stick to the five meals a day plan for losing weight naturally. You do not need to eat a lot when you are eating five meals a day. You can eat one banana, a cup of plain yogurt, and some seeds and nuts for lunch. That is a nutritious meal.

How to lose weight naturally: Avoid processed food with high sodium, sugar and fat

You cannot lose weight when you eat processed food with high sodium, sugar and fat. As far as possible, eat natural food.

If not at all possible, order the meal replacement food bars. These food bars have enough nutrients for your body, and yet they have low calories.

How to lose weight naturally: do not feel deprive of food

You must not feel deprive of food. If you have strong craving for certain food, including junk food, you can eat a bit.

You can share the French fries with others. You can share the packet of potato chips with others. As long as you do not feel you need to give up totally, you will not feel deprive of food.

How to lose weight naturally: read food label wisely

You have to learn to read the food label wisely. Do not buy anything when it says Fat Free, No Added Sugar etc.

Fat free does not mean the item has very low calories. No added sugar does not mean no sugar. The product is probably sweet enough, that is why the manufacturer does not add any more sugar.

How to lose weight naturally: Limit fruit juice and sugar

You have to limit the consumption of fruit juice. Fruit juice has higher concentration of sugar, and less dietary fiber than natural food.

If you desire to drink fruit juice, you can eat the fresh or frozen fruits instead.

Drink enough plain water for the body to get rid of waste. If plain water is too tasteless, you can add a few drops of lemon into the water.

That will enhance the taste and provide Vitamin C for you.

You can check out the simple exercises to burn fat fast.

Is it hard to toilet train your cat?

It is definitely tough to get your cat to do anything at all.


Cats are really stubborn creatures. However, that does not mean it is impossible to toilet train your cat. After all, cats are very smart.

Is it possible to toilet train your cat to use our human toilet? Yes. Certain breeds of cats are easier to train than others.

When I read Toilet Train My Cat guidebook, then I realize that toilet train your cat is not such a simple matter.

This guide book consists of the following information:

1. The three P’s of toilet train your cat.

2. 8 very common methods to toilet train your cat. You have to determine which method to use, otherwise your cat will hate to enter the toilet forever.

3. The advantages of training your cat to use the human toilet.

4. 17 breeds of cats that are easier to train, and the 12 breeds of cats that are harder to train with the common methods. These 12 breeds of cats require different methods.

5. 10 considerations before you decide on toilet train your cat.\

6. What is the hardest part? How to overcome the obstacle of toilet train your cat?

7. The best age of the cat for training. Never train a kitten which is too young.

8. 13 training tips to make the process easier.

9. The 5 steps training process.

10. What you can do if your cat resist the effort.

11. Teaching your cat to balance on the toilet seat, and how to get your cat to flush the toilet after use.

12. How to reward your cats properly.



After reading this guidebook, I have a better understanding of the difficulty of cat training. It is not naturally for a cat to use the human toilet.

However, with the right rewards and motivation, everything is possible.

Sometimes, I think that it is the fault of the owners to give up on their cats. There is nothing wrong with the intelligence of a cat. Being such a smart creature, cat is also very stubborn.

That is why the owners have to trick and treat the cats in order to successfully toilet train the cats.

Are you ready to toilet train your cat now?

You can check out Toilet Train My Cat guidebook.

Stationary Exercise bike to burn 300 calories per hour

Most of us know that treadmill can help us lose weight. However, it is hard to sustain walking or running for an hour on the treadmill.


That is why some of us prefer to use Stationary Exercise bike.

We can use Stationary Exercise bike when we are watching TV. It is easier to exercise and watching TV when we are sitting down, instead of walking or running on the treadmill.

We can also save time when we read and use the Stationary Exercise bike for burning calories.

Stationary Exercise bike offers a low impact exercise option for people who do not want to go to a gym. It is also an option for people who are so busy that they cannot afford time solely for exercising.

Stationary Exercise bike offers a safe exercise routine as well. We do not need to worry about falling off the bicycle.

While some people may burn 300 calories per hour, most people do not achieve the 300 calories per hour target.

It is possible to burn 300 calories per hour if you set the Stationary Exercise bike on a uphill mode, and you cycle really fast and furious for the next hour.

However, that is not sustainable for many of us lazy folks. It is good enough for us to burn some calories after our dinner, and while we are watching TV.

The newer version of Stationary Exercise bike allows you to angle out your legs instead of dropping them down. This is due to the design of the seat in the form of semi-inclined bucket seats. This recumbent exercise bike is best for people with back problem.

The cost of Stationary Exercise bike is relatively low.

You can get used and almost new Stationary Exercise bikes from online stores. If you want to bid for the used recumbent exercise bike with many functions, you can bid at the last three minutes. This is to prevent a bidding war from those who are also interested in getting this recumbent exercise bike.

If you are using a recumbent exercise bike with random program selection, cycling can get very fun. One minute you can pedaling uphill, the next minute you are speeding downhill.

This will add to the enjoyment of a normally boring activity.

How to Build Trust in a Relationship

How do build trust in a relationship? Do you know envy people with a trusting relationship? Do you know that trust or a lack of trust destroys many relationship?


You will not love a person you can no longer trust. That is why the question of how to build trust in a relationship is so important.

How to build trust in a relationship?

There are 7 ways to build trust.



How to build trust in a relationship: Predictable

You need to act predictably in order to build trust in a relationship.

If you are unpredictable in term of having mood swings, it is very hard for anyone to enjoy a relationship with you.

That is why it is important to be predictable.

When you are predictable in your emotional reactions, your taste in food and clothing, it is easier for your boyfriend to choose gifts for you.

He will feel as if he knows you very well.



How to build trust in a relationship: Match words with action

If you say no, means no. If you say you want to lose weight, then act accordingly.

Your words must match your actions. That is the way to come across as a sincere person.

If your words do not match your actions, others will see you as a hypocrite. We all hate people who praise us openly, and back stab us when we are not around.

That is why words and actions must match. That is an important feature in a trusting relationship.



How to build trust in a relationship: Trust in your partner

You must trust in your partner.

If your partner says that he is working late, take him at his own words. You do not need to call him every hour to check his where about.

You must have fundamental belief in the competency of your partner. If your action shows that you do not trust your partner, how are you going to enjoy a trusting relationship?



How to build trust in a relationship: Honest and open

You should avoid keeping secrets in a relationship.

You need to keep work out of your relationship. That means you must not reveal corporate secrets. However, you must not keep any secret in a relationship. That is especially true when it comes to money matter.

Many people dare not inform their partners of the desire to buy expensive things. They buy and try to hide the debt problem from their partner.

They forget that everything will come out eventually. Secrets require enormous energy on your part. That is energy that could be going into building the relationship.



How to build trust in a relationship: Communication

Does your partner know what you wants for your birthday?

Instead of letting him guess and buy something you do not really want, why not just tell him what you want. You can tell him that you want a short trip to a mountain resort. You can tell him how you want the holiday to be.

It is okay to be self-centered as long as you are not selfish.



How to build trust in a relationship: say no

It is good to please your partner. However, it is important to learn to say no.

If your partner wants a big house, and you know that it is just impossible to pay for a big house now, you must say no.

It is better to be upfront and practical. You must not yield to every vain request, and let the relationship strain because of money problem.



How to build trust in a relationship: Strengthen the relationship

A relationship needs time and care. You must never be too busy to build trust in a relationship.

You must try to spend as much time as possible on a common hobby.

Learn to solve the problem arising from the relationship. Do not make personal attacks. Solve the problem and learn from the lessons.

Resource: Magic of making up

How to get an ex boyfriend back

It is an extremely painful time after your boyfriend decides to break up with you.


You do not feel anything in life is important anymore. You do not act or feel like yourself. Life has lost its meaning, and your world has collapsed. The two consuming thoughts are: why does he break up with you, and how to get an ex boyfriend back.

You need to know the reason for the break up before you can think about how to get an ex boyfriend back.

It is hard to think logically about how to get an ex boyfriend back. You feel like calling him and begging him to come back. However, he does not answer your call.

It is usually easier to straighten out the relationship while you are still in it. It is harder when your boyfriend has decided to end it all.

That does not mean it is impossible to get an ex boyfriend back.

The most important consideration is that you must absolutely certain that you want to get him back.

You must ensure that your reasons for getting an ex boyfriend back are the right ones. You must want decide to get him back for the wrong reasons.

That is why you must think carefully before you think seriously about how to get an ex boyfriend back.

The second important consideration is to realize that you may not get him back successfully, especially when you do not change.

If your ex boyfriend breaks up with you due to your possessiveness, you are not likely to get him back. He enjoys the freedom so much that the thought of being with you is like a mental prison.

In this case, even if you manage to get him back, you cannot recapture the magic of the relationship.

If you seriously cannot live without him, and you want to know how to get an ex boyfriend back, you must learn to control your emotions.

You must not contact him when you are in an emotionally unstable stage. You must not call him when you are in a foul mood.

If you do, you will kill any hope of getting an ex boyfriend back.

How to get an ex boyfriend back starts with controlling your emotions. How to get an ex boyfriend back is also about living your own life.

You must show that you are a mature person. You can keep up with your daily routines, taking care of your hair, your body, wearing nice clothes and nice shoes. You can arrange more shopping trips with your friends.

You can try to stay active and enjoying your life without bothering him. That is one working strategy of how to get an ex boyfriend back.

That is especially true if he finds you too demanding and too possessive. You can stay out of his life, and shows that you can live without the urge to check on him every single minute.

He may even contact you eventually.

When he does call you, you can keep the conversation light and casual. Keep your emotions under control.

If he wants to meet up with you, you can make sure that you look your best. Do not allow him to touch you or kiss you.

It is relatively easy to get him back if he calls you. It is harder to get him back if you call him instead.

That is why getting your emotion under control is very important. That is the factor that determines your success or failure to get him back.

Resource: Magic of making up

Dragon Fire by William Cohen

When I checked out Dragon Fire by William Cohen in the library, I saw that William Cohen was a former secretary of defense.


Dragon Fire by William Cohen has too many political struggles in this book.

It seems that the author is using the thriller to air his opinion about how the government is supposed to work.

I like the plot in Dragon Fire by William Cohen. The plot is very scary in a sense that it is realistically portrayed. Military exercises could go wrong. Air craft could exploded due to sabotage by internal persons.

Michael Patrick Santini is an outstanding character in this story. The scene at the bar where he beats up a man is really fantastic. I cannot imagine what will happen if this happens in real life.

I think Dragon Fire by William Cohen will be more interesting if far less countries are involved in the plot. While the main plot is the rogue group in China plus the Russian politician, the story brings in German connection and Israel connection, beside Japan and North Korea. Al Qaeda group appears in this story as well.

I prefer a simple plot without so many minor connections.

Dragon Fire by William Cohen is a bit too heavy in term of the language use. The English words read like political scripts. It will be better if the words are more simplified.

At first, I was disappointed with the two presidents, namely the Chinese President and the USA President. Both seem too weak to be of any use in Dragon Fire by William Cohen.

However, as the story develops, the Chinese President outshines the USA President in wisdom. I think Dragon Fire by William Cohen would be a better book if he portrayed the USA President as a strong and decisive person who is not misleader by flattery.

There are certain interesting quotes in this book:

Quote 1 from Dragon Fire by William Cohen

“It is business that drives the politician today.”

Quote 2 from Dragon Fire by William Cohen

“But it was his gift at oratory, the ability to reach deep down into his soul and stir the passions of his people, that gave them hope that life was going to get better for them and their children.
Quote 3 from Dragon Fire by William Cohen

“History, as Mark Twain observed, didn’t always repeat itself, but it did tend to rhyme.”

Walking for weight loss at home

Is it possible for you to engage in walking for weight loss at home?


You may think that your house is too small for walking for weight loss. After all, you just need 40 steps to walk from bedroom to kitchen.

40 steps burn just 2 calories. It is not even enough as part of walking for weight loss.

Actually it is possible for you to engage in walking for weight loss at home.

That is provided you have a treadmill and a pedometer at home.

You do not even need to get a new treadmill for the sake of walking for weight loss at home. My first treadmill is an used manual treadmill. The manual treadmill is in a very rotten condition. I got it nearly free. The payment is enough to cover the cost of transport for the former owner to get it to my house.

Nearly every part is rusty. Since I hate to waste money on lubricants, so I used cooking oil to oil the gear.

It works rather well, except for some squeaking sound.

However, for the purpose of walking for weight loss, this rusty old manual treadmill is perfect.

I need more energy to walk on the rusty and old manual treadmill. That is how walking for weight loss can be done.

Since I am a person who loves to multitask, I even read paperback while walking on the treadmill.

Since I am reading and walking, the walking speed suffers. Instead of walking 100 steps a minute, I think I manage just 80 steps a minute.  I used a pedometer to monitor the number of steps taken.

Even then, an hour walk produces enough sweat to prove that walking for weight loss at home is a workable idea.

Later on, there is a manufacturer promotion. I trade in the old and rusty treadmill for a new treadmill. It is not a manual version.

I can set the speed and I enjoy walking on the new treadmill far more than the old one.

However, the new treadmill does not last very long. It burns out within five years.

This new treadmill serves the purpose of allowing me to read and walk at the same time.

I like the combination of walking and reading, especially on a rainy day. Since I cannot go out, I might as well stay home to read and walk.

Walking for weight loss at home is very enjoyable.

Walking for weight loss at home is cheaper too. I do not need to put on shoes and wear out the running shoes. I do not need to buy drinks or snacks. I do not need to pay for gym membership. I do not need to fork out money for transport.

It is too bad that walking for weight loss at home is not possible now. The new house is much smaller than the old house, I simply do not have room for a treadmill.

I still the days of walking for weight loss at home. I miss the time when I read 50 pages and walk 3,000 steps at the same time.

What is pleather?

I first came across pleather in a thriller by William Lashner.


The main character in the legal thriller, Victor Carl, was extremely proud of his pleather couch.

When I search the internet for pleather, I find so many things made from pleather, such as pleather jacket, pleather dress, pleather sofa, black pleather, pleather coat, pleather bra, pleather corset, pleather shoes, pleather shorts and all kinds of pleather furniture.



What exactly is pleather? Why is pleather fabric so popular?

Pleather is introduced way back in 1970.

The word Pleather tells us that this synthetic material is made of plastic, and designed to have the texture of leather.

That is why it is a cheaper alternative to leather. The modern pleather looks more like leather than plastic.

The designers love this material because it is cheap, yet looks elegant.

In certain cases, the material looks so much like leather that customers cannot see any difference between pleather and real leather.

Some people choose this material, not just for the price, but for the love of animals. As long as the demand for leather decreases, the killing of animals for its skin will decrease.

That is why they choose the synthetic material instead of real leather.



If you look around your house, you may find that you have more pleather goods than leather goods.

Actually I did have a pleather sofa once, the problem is that the material is entirely unsuitable for the climate in Singapore.

Can you imagine getting hot and sweaty sitting on the sofa? That is why we threw the sofa away. At that time, I did not know the real name for the material. We called it as the fake leather.



Even though this material exists for a relatively long time, it has yet to overtake the demand for leather. The problem is that real leather is breathable. No matter how good pleather is, it is never as breathable as leather.

Hopefully a day will come when the manufacturing of pleather reaches a stage that it possess the qualities of leather.

As of now, pleather looks good, costs less, is a strong material and durable. The only thing is that it is not breathable.

Wearing a pair of leather shoes is a comfort, simply because leather is a breathable material. That is why leather shoes hardly smells, but fake leather shoes smell horribly. The smell is as bad as rotten fish after you wear the shoes for more than ten hours.

A Killer’s Kiss by William Lashner

I read A Killer’s Kiss by William Lashner on a coach trip.


Since the 6 hours journey ended up as an 8 hours journey due to traffic jam, I managed to complete A Killer’s Kiss by William Lashner within a day.

I find A Killer’s Kiss by William Lashner not as good as the other legal thrillers featuring Victor Carl. A Killer’s Kiss by William Lashner does not have as much courtroom scene as the rest of the legal thrillers.

The only courtroom scene in A Killer’s Kiss by William Lashner is to defend Derek, a rather minor character in this book.

The theme in A Killer’s Kiss by William Lashner is about first love. In this case, the twisted first love between Julia, and her high school lover.

The most outstanding character in A Killer’s Kiss by William Lashner is Gwen, the housekeeper whom nobody pays attention to.

Gwen practically manipulates everyone without drawing attention to herself. She manages to get away with the $1.7m, right in front of Victor, and everyone else.

I guess A Killer’s Kiss by William Lashner would be a better novel with interesting courtroom scene. Victor Carl excels in cross examination and charming the jurors.

I like the ending in this book, especially the part where Derek presents the nine-page invoice to Victor Carl. The letterhead is very unique:

“DEREK MOATS -INVESTIGATIONS

No Girl Too Tall

No Case Too Small”

In William Lasher’s words, The nine-page invoice “was quite a document, so over inflated in its self-importance, so rich in useless detail, so full of bogus items and bloated numbers, so nauseating in its final tally that for a moment I thought it could only have been drafted by a lawyer.”

Well, the invoice was drafted by the secretary of Victor Carl.

I like this particular sentence in A Killer’s Kiss by William Lashner:

“Old love doesn't disappear; it is too potent an elixir for that. Instead it burrows deep into bone, like a parasite, waiting until just the right moment to reassert itself and sabotage your life.”

As a thriller, A Killer’s Kiss by William Lashner is an exciting book. However, I miss the courtroom scene and all the familiar characters. Even Detective McDeiss plays a minor role in this story.